10 Questions with Marek Czarzbon

Marek is CEO of Made in Holo, a German consulting firm that offers HoloLens design and development services. He won the 14th HoloLens Challenge with a multiplayer HoloCar app. Made In Holo’s latest product is SpaceCatcher, which uses HoloLens to scan and model a room. Here are his answers to the 10 Questions:

What movie has left the most lasting impression on you?The Devil’s Advocate – the big question about what we need to be happy in our life. An aesthetic journey about the weakness of mankind. And about what we believe makes us strong. I like movies that prod me to reconsider what I do. To feel happiness if I’m on the right path, or a wakeup call if I’m not 🙂

What is the earliest video game you remember playing?Prince of Persia – at the time very impressive graphics, even if very reduced. Good mix of logic riddle, fast use of keyboard. To get the impression, see this fragment of the game.

Who is the person who has most influenced the way you think?I don’t have a single idol. I like to listen to many opinions, to stay open minded. I’m not able to mention a single person but I have a lot of people who have given me signals to “filter” my life.

When was the last time you changed your mind about something?Yesterday. Very often I’ll change my mind if the known facts are changing (from my perspective).

What’s a programming skill people assume you have but that you are terrible at?No discrepancy 🙂

What inspires you to learn?I’ve studied computer science and graphic design at the same time. This is the way my brain works. This give me the ability to connect technologies and information in a different way than the typical computer nerd will do 😉

All combinations of technology and aesthetics provoke me to try it out. To learn.

Other motivations are traveling, discovering other cultures, people—our roots. This is the best way to understand why we behave the way we do.

Hunger to understand.

I want to have the level 7 experience –> See the last question.

What do you need to believe in order to get through the day?To trust people.

What’s a view that you hold but can’t defend?Trusting people 😉

I really don’t like the “politics” involved in human interactions. This make us progress slowly. But even if I don’t like them, I can play the game, if I have to.

What will the future killer Mixed Reality app do?Connect the things that computers are good at, i.e. collecting information, with the analytic capabilities of our brains. Look at this TED talk to understand what I mean.

I believe the final version of MX will be a direct connection between biological brains and computers. The optical connection like HoloLens is a good substitute.

What book have you recommended the most?On Intelligence by Jeff Hawkins – Jeff is the creator of Palm, of you remember, the first successful hand computer with graffiti as special way of writing characters, to make it easy to read by a computer.

The money he earned with this device, he invested in research about how our brain works.

One of the amazing “wow” effect of the book was how our brains learn. For new experiences, we need up to seven connections in our brain. This gives us the feeling that time is slowing. If we are in a routine, we need only up to three connections. In this case time feels like it is rushing. This is the reason that with age time seems to be much faster than in the childhood. After reading this book, I try to proactively have a lot of level 7 experiences.